Brennan a breath of fresh air - but stewards' decision was clearly right

Paddy Brennan took another step towards being knighted for restoring public faith in sportsmen at Aintree on Thursday, spurning a fairly clear invitation to knife a fellow jockey in the stewards' room at a major festival for the second time this year.

"I don't think it affected my finishing position, to be honest," was his evidence when asked about Pied Piper jumping across his mount, Knight Salute, at the final flight of the Jewson Anniversary 4-Y-O Juvenile Hurdle, which had ended in a dead heat.

The stewards weren't minded to leave it at that, pressing Brennan as to whether his mount had lost momentum.